


where unspokens converge then disconnect

by majesdane



Category: Degrassi the Next Generation
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-12-06
Updated: 2009-12-06
Packaged: 2017-10-04 05:34:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/majesdane/pseuds/majesdane
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU. <i>Alex likes to kiss Paige in the morning when she first wakes up.</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	where unspokens converge then disconnect

  
_i keep wanting to give you what is already yours  
it is the morning of the mornings together  
breath of summer oh my found one  
the sleep in the same current and each waking to you_   


\-- w.s. merwin, 'a birthday'

**i. one**

They meet during their senior year at Clark, during that awkward transition period between fall and summer, when it's alternatively hot and cold, depending on the hour. They meet through a friend of a friend; Paige is taking an elective course with a girl who's dating a boy Alex and four other people are sharing a house with.

Alex likes the easy smile Paige gives her, the softness of her skin when they shook hands, and how she smelled like lilacs. And there is something about her that Alex finds intriguing, but she can't quite put her finger on it. Maybe it's the way Paige laughs when they are alone, the way her eyes seem to sparkle. Or maybe it's the way Paige says her name, with the slightest of hint of an accent, so comes out sounding like _Ahlex_.

But she likes the way that Paige ducks her head, smiling, when she says goodnight, and the way Paige calls her up the next day to tell her that she'd had a lot of fun last night, and would Alex maybe like to get together some time and hang out? They meet for lunch two days later, Friday afternoon, when they're both done for the day with classes. Paige orders a Coke, diet, of course; Alex, a beer. Paige sips her drink delicately, through a straw, so as not to stain her teeth; Alex downs her glass in a few long gulps.

Paige is so different from her, refined where Alex is not, ladylike where Alex is all men's shirts and baggy jeans. But that's what Alex liked about Paige, the fact that they come from completely different worlds. Alex is shy where Paige is bold, and it's Paige who makes the first move, pushing Alex up against her bedroom wall and pressing their lips together, all in one swift motion.

Paige tastes like coffee and toothpaste and her body is warm; when she pulls away, all Alex can do is grin and pull her back.

 

**ii. two**

It's Paige who picks out the apartment, three weeks before they graduate. _Our apartment_ she calls it, and she likes the way it sounds. Solid, lasting, like she's finally going to achieve something great. It's a loft in the city, and Alex protests that it'll be too expensive, but Paige has been dreaming about something like this for quite some time now. A little extra cost doesn't really bother her all that much.

Alex's mother is pleased about the whole arrangement. She calls Paige up to tell her that if she needs help with anything, to just let her know. Paige's own parents don't call at all, just a single e-mail asking how she's doing, and if she has any plans for after graduation, because you know how poorly the economy is doing these days. The message is flat and dull, but Paige is used to this by now.

They graduate on a Thursday.

Paige, completely unabashed, kisses Alex on stage when everyone throws their caps into the air. Alex is blushing violently when Paige finally pulls away, but she's smiling too. Paige is suddenly struck with the thought that they're going to be spending their lives together from now, and she can't stop herself; she kisses Alex again

When they slide into bed, the new bed that Alex picked out for their apartment, with a large wooden headboard, Paige wraps her around her and clings to her. She kisses Alex's neck through her dark hair, which smells of soap and sweat. Alex moves forward, pressing Paige down onto the bed, and Paige sighs as Alex pushes up her flimsy nightgown and trails kisses along her stomach.

 

**iii. three**

Alex likes to kiss Paige in the morning when she first wakes up, even if they both haven't brushed their teeth yet and Paige tastes like last night's mixed drinks and sex. She likes the sleepy sort of way Paige pushes into the kiss, sighing and looping her arms lazily around her. Alex likes the way Paige mumbles for five extra minutes of sleep, while Alex trails kisses along her collarbone, feather light.

In the shower, Alex pours body wash into her palms, rubs them together, runs her soapy hands along Paige's shoulders, stomach. She covers Paige's breasts with her hands, cupping them, and Paige steals a kiss, smelling of the honey and oatmeal scented conditioner she'd just used. And then Alex presses her back against the shower wall and kisses her properly, her hands pinning Paige's arms down to the sides. The spray of the shower hits Alex's back; with water dripping from their hair, noses, lips, Alex likes to pretend that they're kissing in the rain.

Paige makes them breakfast while Alex sits at the kitchen table reading the newspaper and sipping her coffee. They're almost like a married couple, Alex thinks, and the thought makes her smile. As Paige is sitting down and pouring herself a glass of orange juice, the thought occurs to Alex that they actually could be married; she imagines them ten years from now, in a little house in the suburbs, with a white picket fence and two hybrid cars parked in the driveway.

At this moment, she has the sudden urge to get down on one knee and ask Paige to marry her. Paige would say no, of course, and would then go on to list a thousand reasons why, all while drowning her pancakes in syrup, with Alex still kneeling dumbly on the floor.

She thinks it makes her love Paige more.

 

**iv. four**

Sometimes when they kiss Alex tastes like the peppermint, and Paige wonders why, thinks it might be from schnapps or chewing gum, toothpaste or candy. Sometimes she smells like peppermint too, thanks to the body wash that Paige got her for Christmas last year, and even their sheets are red and white striped, and so now when Paige thinks _peppermint_, she also thinks _Alex_, and she likes that very much.

Sometimes, when she can't sleep, she lies in bed and watches Alex, watches her chest rise and fall, her breathing slow and steady. She likes to run her fingers along Alex's arms, to trace her fingertips along Alex's jaw. Alex never wakes, and Paige likes that; there's almost something secret about watching Alex like this, something only she can see. She likes this Alex, the quiet, peaceful Alex, and she smiles and slides back down in bed and kisses her sleeping lover. Alex stirs when she does this, pushing back into the kiss, still half-asleep. Paige dips her head, kisses the space between Alex's breasts.

And sometimes she likes to make love to Alex when Alex is still half-asleep, likes Alex's slight, small smile as Paige moves her hands between Alex's legs and presses her fingers against her. Paige likes the way Alex strains on the bed, muscles tensing in her legs, likes the way sighs her name, _Paige_, when she comes. And Paige likes how Alex holds her afterwards, while Paige's fingers slide against her own wetness, getting herself off.

There's a feeling in her, something she can't seem to put into words, even though she knows what it is, and she knows there are words to describe it. It's just that it feels like the words won't be enough, that they'll just fall short, and everything is all bottled up inside her, and when Alex takes her hand and kisses her fingertips, one by one by one, she thinks she may burst because of it.


End file.
